Combined cigarette support and extinguisher



Feb. 21, 1950 c. F. BLOCK COMBINED CIGARETTE SUPPORT AND EXTINGUISHER Filed Oct. 29, 1948 v INVENTOR. CHARLES F. BLOCK BY A c a g ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 21, 1950 COMBINED CIGARETTE SUPPORT AND EXTINGUISHER 1 Charles F. Block, Batavia, N. Y.

Application October 29, 1948, Serial No. 57,251

3 Claims.

This invention relates to a combined support and extinguisher for lighted cigarettes.

Many fires have been caused by the falling of lighted cigarettes from ash trays as a result of the changing center of gravity of the cigarettes as they continue to burn. For example, if a lighted cigarette is laid on the rim of an ash tray with the lighted end over the body of the tray, the cigarette will continue to burn toward the rim until the cigarette drops from the tray on to the table or floor on which the ash tray is supported.

The present invention has for its purpose a cigarette vise which will grip and extinguish a lighted cigarette that has been left to burn on an ash tray.

The features and advantages of the present invention will appear from the detailed description and claims when taken with the drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the cigarette vise of this invention shown mounted on the rim of an ash tray, a fragment only of the tray being illustrated;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the present cigarette vise shown without the ash tray; and

Fig. 3 is a transverse section through one of the supporting discs of the vise.

The present cigarette vise is preferably mounted on a rim of an ash tray T, only a portion of which is illustrated in Fig. 1. The vise includes a base 5, provided with two upwardly diverging posts 6, the upper ends of which are spaced apart a distance slightly greater than the diameter of a cigarette. The upper end of each post is provided with an upwardly inclined pin 1, on which a disc 8 or other fiat piece, preferably made of metal, is freely rotatable. The pins 1 are so placed that the discs 8 are supported thereon to define an upwardly directed V-shaped space in which a lighted cigarette C can be placed as shown in Fig. 1. define an angle of sixteen degrees therebetween. Each disc has a hub 9 (Fig. 3) to space the disc from its post 6. This enables the discs to rotate freely and to change the relation between their inner surfaces, readily, as the center of gravity of the supported cigarette changes, as it burns. Each disc has an inwardly directed rim In on its inner surface whereby the discs can more easily grip a cigarette. If desired the rim I!) can be milled or knurled to insure better gripping action.

In use, when the smoker wishes to dispose of a partially smoked cigarette, he will place the cigarette C between the discs 8, with a slight downward thrust upon that portion of the ciga- For example the discs may rette that is between the discs 8, thereby wedging the cigarette slightly between the discs, with the lighted end directed over the ash tray T. As the cigarette burns, its center of gravity shifts toward the right (Fig. 1). As the center of gravity of the cigarette shifts, the'discs rotate, thereby gradually raising the left end of the cigarette. When the cigarette has burned until its lighted end is between the discs 8, the unburned portion thereof will be gripped by the portion of the discs at the right (Fig. 1) of the pins 1. This tends to force together the portion of the disc surfaces at the left of the pins 1 with the result that the lighted end of the cigarette is pinched to extinguish the same. The discs 1 preferably afford large heat conducting surfaces so that the lighted end of the cigarette also tends to be cooled, thereby contributing further to its extinction.

What I claim is:

1. In a combined support and extinguisher for lighted cigarettes, a base, a pair of spaced upwardly diverging posts mounted on said base, and a fiat piece loosely and rotatably mounted on the inside of each post, said pieces being mounted to define an upwardly opening V-shaped space adapted to hold a cigarette.

2. In a combined support and extinguisher for lighted cigarettes, a base, a pair of spaced upwardly diverging posts mounted on said base, and a disc loosely and rotatably mounted on the inside of each post, said discs being mounted to define an upwardly opening V-shaped space adapted to hold a cigarette, said discs having inwardly directed rims facing each other.

3. In a combined support and'extinguisher for lighted cigarettes, a base, a pair of spaced upwardly diverging posts mounted on said base, a pair of opposing pins respectively mounted on the upper ends of said posts, the free ends of said pins being directed upwardly a slight amount with respect to the horizontal, and a disc loosely rotatable on each pin whereby said discs can rotate and the relation between the inner surfaces thereof can change with the changing center of gravity of a burning cigarette supported therebetween.

CHARLES F. BLOCK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,813,313 Offutt July 7, 1931 1,856,990 Frank May 3, 1932 

